The Influence of Short Message Service (SMS) Advertising on the Purchase Behaviour of Young Consumers in a Tertiary Institution in Ghana

Abstract

Technology has advanced the use of text messaging (SMS) as an advertising medium in recent times. Thus telecom operators in Ghana use SMS advertising (SMS ad) to gain the attention of prospective consumers to patronize their products. Young people have been the major drivers of mobile phone and SMS, however, the factors that induce them to accept mobile devices as an advertising medium and to purchase a product are not yet fully understood. The perception of both young and female consumers has also not been explored to allow advertisers to plan effective campaigns to elicit the response of this segment of the market. This study examines the attitudes and factors that drive consumers’ acceptance of SMS ads and purchase behaviour. A stratified random sampling was done in one of the leading Polytechnics in Ghana, and self-administered questionnaires were completed by 80(students) respondents, aged between 18-35 years. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 16.0) was used to analyze the data gathered. It was observed that consumers’ perception of informativeness of SMS ads are positively correlated to their overall attitudes towards SMS ad and purchase behaviour while irritation and trust were attitudes which had a negative correlation on their purchase behaviour. Permission and trust are identified in this study as important elements that ensure the success of SMS ads. The advertiser is advertised to develop innovative strategy to capture the attention of young male consumers who have disaffection for SMS ads.